Amidst mad rush in jewellery shops for Dhanteras sale on the eve of  Diwali festival across Tripura, the state police has made a massive security arrangement to maintain the law and order with special measures for traffic management.

Massive security arrangements are being made to ensure peaceful observance of the festivities of Diwali in Agartala city and other parts of the state.

Giving details of the security measures for the West Tripura district, SP (West) Kiran Kumar addressing a press conference on Saturday said that the state police establishment is leaving no stone unturned to ensure peaceful celebrations of Diwali like recently concluded festival of Durga Puja.

Kumar said this year as per available information on the Diwali night, altogether 299 Kali Puja to be organized across the district including 207 Pujas in urban areas of the district.

Special measures have been adopted for safe fire cracker bursting during kali Puja celebration at AD Nagar police line, where thousands of devotees will gather to see the Diwali celebration, said Kumar.

He said that an adequate number of TSR, CRPF along with state police including women personnel will be deployed across the district and police will continue an anti-narcotic special drive and will also intensify during the celebration of festivities.

All major motor stands, car auto parking areas and crowds will be under CCTV surveillance. The organizers of puja committees especially, where big pandals have been requested to install CCTV cameras in and around their puja pandals. Under the Emergency Response Security System (ERSS), mobile vehicles will also remain in service round the clock, for which the toll free call number is 112.

Police mobile, foot patrols, anti-liquor raids, surprise checks of hotels and checking of vehicles have been intensified and actions are being taken against anti-social elements, said the SP and urged the people to celebrate the festival of Diwali by only bursting green crackers.

Meanwhile, the city police along with civil administration and with authorities of Tripura State Pollution Control Board (TSPCB) have started their crackdown operation against high decibel fire crackers to control noise pollution during Diwali.

Separate teams from police with officials of SDM (Sadar) and TSPCB started their crackdown operation in various parts of the city including in Kaman Chowmuhani, Maharaj Ganj  Bazar Central road, Battala Bazar and Durga Chowmuhani areas against the storage and selling of firecrackers, which have above 90 decibel sound capacity since Saturday  morning.

Police said that hundreds boxes of high decibel firecrackers worth rupees lakhs were seized from various shops in the city and owners of these shops were given stringent instruction to stop their sale of high decibel fire crackers.

TSPCB sources   said that several crackdown teams including the team of State Pollution Control Board will start their search and surveillance operation in all districts of the state including capital city of Agartala against sound-pollution on Sunday morning also till the end of Diwali festival.

However, TSPCB has earlier issued a notification for banning and selling of extra-loud firecrackers, which are above 90 decibel of sound capacity during the celebration Diwali festival.

In case of violation of the rules, the administration will take stringent steps against the violators, said TSPCB sources.

Apart from these, the state pollution board also imposed a ban on bursting fire crackers in front of hospitals, educational institutions and courts during the celebration of Diwali festival across the state.